WINDOWS

I heard an excerpt of Pope Benedict’s homily at New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral on the radio. During his recent visit to the United States, he addressed a congregation that consisted mainly of Catholic clergy, but I was struck by how some of his remarks could apply to us at Central.

The Pope used the gothic architecture of the cathedral as the framework for his remarks. He said: “the stained glass windows . . . flood the interior with mystic light. From the outside, those windows are dark, heavy, even dreary. But once one enters the church, they suddenly come alive; reflecting the light passing through them, they reveal all their splendor. Many writers - here in America we can think of Nathaniel Hawthorne - have used the image of stained glass to illustrate the mystery of the Church herself. It is only from the inside, from the experience of faith and ecclesial life, that we see the Church as she truly is: flooded with grace, resplendent in beauty, adorned by the manifold gifts of the Spirit. It follows that we, who live the life of grace within the Church’s communion, are called to draw all people into this mystery of light.” Listening to those words, I couldn’t help but be reminded of Central. We are justifiably proud of our historic building, and working hard to restore it to its original design by rebuilding the tower. Who among us hasn’t silently praised God when the sun streams through our stained glass windows at the perfect moment in a worship service, filling the sanctuary with colored light and reminding us of the loving presence of our Creator?

We are the lucky ones - we’re on the inside. Someone, sometime, somewhere, walked each of us through a set of church doors. And today we find ourselves in Central’s sanctuary. It is easy for us to see the light. It is all around us. But what about those who look at our church from the outside - who see a large, imposing building with windows, as Benedict said, “are dark, heavy, even dreary?”

Each of us is being called to walk someone through our church doors, just as someone once did it for us. Because beyond the imposing exterior and the dark windows there is love, faith, color, and light. Reach out and show someone what’s on the inside.

Julie Osborn
Evangelism Team

May 2008 Messenger